What is Paleo?

Paleo is a modern nutritional diet that is based on the nutritional concepts of the Palaeolithic era — a period that ended about 10,000 years ago when agriculture and the domestication of animals started. Therefore, the Palaeolithic diet is based on foods that are assumed to have been available to the humans during that time and recommends avoiding food categories that were not available. Refined sugar, processed grains as well as processed oils are examples of this. In contrast to this, foods with a low glycaemic index are promoted.

While high-calorie processed foods are a huge part of the common diet, the proponents of paleo argue that modern humans are maladapted to eating these, and have been one of the causes to modern-day problems such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

A few facts about Paleo

More protein and meat: Since it is assumed that hunter-gatherer diets consisted of 19-35% proteins a higher amount of meat, seafood and animal products represent the staple foods of today’s Paleo diets. In this context, the paleo diets have a moderate to higher fat intake, which is dominated by monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats and omega-3 fats, while avoiding trans-fats, and omega-6 fats.

Fewer carbohydrates: Today a typical diet gets a lot of carbohydrates from dairy products and grains. Instead, the paleo diet recommends the consumption of non-starchy fresh fruits and vegetables to provide 35-45 % daily calories and be the main source of carbohydrates.

High fiber: High fiber intake not via grains, but via non-starchy vegetables and fruits.

Amongst those foods that are avoided are as previously mentioned dairy products, processed oils, sugar, grains such as wheat, rye, canary seed and barley as well as legumes (such as beans and peanuts), nor coffee or alcohol.